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Automated Clearing House (ACH) is one of the most common payment options available for merchants, but as with any other payment option, it comes with fees. ACH processing fees take many forms, with different payment processors offering different structures, schedules, and rates. Fees aren’t only determined by the processor, but also by the nature of the merchant account.
To help merchants understand what to expect from ACH processing fees and how they compare to fees for other common payment options, this guide will cover:
- ACH fee types and typical rates
- Advantages of ACH over other payment options
- How the nature of your business can affect your ACH fees
Let’s dive into each to get a better idea of what ACH processing offers merchants and how much it is likely to cost them.
ACH Fee Structures and Rates
The following table breaks down the most common ACH processing fee types:
ACH Processing Fee Types
*In addition to regular transaction/monthly fees
Per-transaction fees are the fees that are paid directly for the processing of each payment. There are some cases in which these can be exchanged for “batch fees” to reduce the per-transaction cost for businesses that process a high volume of transactions. Whether businesses pay flat fees and/or percentage-based fees can depend on their payment processor and their individual agreement with them, as well as average ticket size, and expected number of transactions.
Monthly service fees, ACH return fees, and chargeback/dispute fees are designed to pay for the other functions of a payment processor. Service fees help pay for the administrative costs of running a given account, and return and chargeback fees cover the cost of dealing with those incidents as they arise.
Why Offer ACH?
ACH processing isn’t the only payment option with fees, and credit card fees are typically significantly more expensive. Not only that, but ACH payments are made from a customer’s bank account, and it is more challenging to charge back from a traditional bank account than it is when using a credit card.
As a result, ACH processing is more affordable than credit card processing and causes significantly fewer incidental costs along the way by making it harder for customers to frivolously charge back legitimate purchases.
How Your Business Type Can Affect ACH Processing Fees
One of the most common reasons a business will be charged higher ACH fees is its risk profile. Businesses in high-risk industries will usually have to pay higher payment processing fees regardless of the payment method, and this is especially true for the few high-risk industries that can still qualify for more common, traditional payment processors.
This can be partially alleviated by seeking out a high-risk payment processing specialist. These specialists offer better protection against fraud and chargebacks, reducing the fees they incur, and they won’t penalize companies for high-risk behavior that is common in the given industry. While this doesn’t mean a high-risk company will pay the same fees as a low-risk one with these processors, it usually means they’ll save money down the line in the form of fee savings, lower chargeback rates, and/or fewer penalties for high-risk behavior.
High-Risk ACH Processing with Seamless Chex
Seamless Chex is an experienced high-risk payment processor that specializes in purpose-driven features like chargeback management tools and fraud protection. Our 99.1% approval rate and comprehensive high-risk industry list mean businesses of nearly all industries and sizes can be confident in our support. We work to truly understand your business from the outset, with upfront underwriting and individualized payment schedules designed to work for each client’s market and business cycle.
To learn more about ACH processing fees, contact us today.
